The Objects of Thought

Tim Crane

Acclaimed monograph by a leading philosopher with a worldwide reputation

Clear and concise in its explanation of influential and complex views

The Objects of Thought

Tim Crane

Description

The Objects of Thought addresses the ancient question of how it is possible to think about what does not exist. Tim Crane argues that the representation of the non-existent is a pervasive feature of our thought about the world, and that we will not adequately understand thought's representational power ('intentionality') unless we have understood the representation of the non-existent. Intentionality is conceived by Crane in terms of the direction of the mind upon an object of thought, or an intentional object. Intentional objects are what we think about. Some intentional objects exist and some do not. Non-existence poses a problem because there seem to be truths about non-existent intentional objects, but truths are answerable to reality, and reality contains only what exists. The proposed solution is to accept that there are some genuine truths about non-existent intentional objects, but to hold that they must be reductively explained in terms of truths about what does exist. The Objects of Thought offers both an original account of the nature of intentionality and a solution to the problem of thought about the non-existent.

The Objects of Thought

Tim Crane

Table of Contents

PART I: OBJECTS 1. The problem of nonexistence2. Existence and quantification3. The nature of existence and non-existencePART II: THOUGHT 4. The structure of intentionality5. Reductionism and psychologism6. Thinking about specific thingsConcluding remarksBibliographyIndex

The Objects of Thought

Tim Crane

Author Information

Tim Crane, University of Cambridge

Tim Crane is Knightbridge Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge, and a Professorial Fellow of Peterhouse College. He is the author of Elements of Mind: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Mind (OUP, 2001), and co-editor (with Katalin Farkas) of Metaphysics: A Guide and Anthology (OUP, 2004). He is the philosophy editor of the Times Literary Supplement, and the general editor of the Routledge Encylopedia of Philosophy. Crane is also a member (by election) of the Academia Europaea, on the editorial board of Mind and Language, and a member of the Analysis committee.

The Objects of Thought

Tim Crane

Reviews and Awards

"The Objects of Thought is a rich book, full of ideas and arguments. Making room for non-existent objects is a complicated business, and Crane covers a lot of ground very clearly. So this is a great book for anyone who wishes to get a sophisticated overview of the debate about non-existent objects. Because I have only been able to discuss a very small part of this complicated issue, my suggestion is to go out and read the book." --Analysis Reviews

"Ambitious, ingenious, and lucid...Crane's excellent book...has all sorts of interesting and insightful things to say about metaphysics, language, and intentionality. There is a great deal to be learned about these things from TheObjects of Thought, whether or not one ultimately agrees with the details of Crane's positive view. Crane also has a fluid clear style that makes his book a pleasure to read. So I recommend it very warmly, not merely to those interested in the nonexistent, but to all those interested in metaphysics and intentionality." -- Mind

"His discussion throughout is both delightfully clear and eminently sensible...a quality that is rarer than it should be in view of much recent metaphysical extravagance in analytic philosophy...Tim's Crane's account is, all told, of considerable merit, and can be recommended to anyone concerned with the nature of the mind." -- The Times Literary Supplement

"ingenious, full of insight and wonderfully clearly written." -- The Philosophical Quarterly

"elegant and original." -- Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews

"Crane offers a solid contribution to the debate on the problem of intentional inexistence...Highly recommended." -- CHOICE

"I recommend it highly to those interested not only in the specific matters with which it deals, but also to philosophers of mind more generally." -- Philosophy

"a rich book, full of ideas and arguments...Crane covers a lot of ground very clearly. So this is a great book for anyone who wishes to get a sophisticated overview of the debate about non-existent objects. " -- Analysis

"[a] wonderful little elegant book...one is struck by the incredible clarity of exposition that makes the book highly valuable as an introduction to the problem...This is a wonderful piece of philosophical argumentation and analysis...full of insight...a major contribution to the contemporary debate in this field." -- Jocelyn Benoist, European Journal of Philosophy